Sandshark Scuffle
by Flowerstar
Summary: Set in Ratchet & Clank. Upon arrival at planet Aridia, Ratchet and Clank took it upon themselves to seek out Skidd McMarxx and his client in Outpost X11. Once they've located Skidd, he made a deal with the duo to deal with a horde of sandsharks and the sandshark generators in exchange for a hoverboard. They soon made an agreement to dispose the minor threat.


Well, here's my first Ratchet &amp; Clank fanfiction! I'm so sorry for not writing a fanfiction for quite some time, I've been extremely busy with mostly university, university assignments and my life. A lot of things have been going on since the previous fanfiction I've written which is, "_Family Matters_".

Thanks to one of my friends on Facebook (I've actually met and befriended him on deviantART before I deactivated my account due to the fact I've completely lost my interest in it and I needed to move on which I'm sure will happen to everyone at some point in their lives), I recently got into the _Ratchet &amp; Clank_ series last year, just in time for this year's upcoming movie. To be honest, I knew about the series years ago but I weren't interested in the games at the time. To be honest, the shooting gameplay and the weapons have put me off of the whole franchise back then. Last year, my friend told me all about the games, the characters and tons of things that were included in the aforementioned games and that is when I swallowed my pride and I decided to give the series a second chance. I guess trying out something new and different which is utterly out of my comfort zone isn't such a bad thing after all. I never realised that kicking intergalactic butt is surprisingly fun. But now I regret missing out on this surprisingly compelling series to begin with, not to mention it's going to be a doozy trying to hunt down the rest of the games. I guess this is what I get for being stubbornly picky. I didn't realise that trying out something new and different is just what I needed to conjure up new ideas. It opened up the doors to new ideas and the possibilities were endless. Ever since I became fascinated with the series, I keep getting ideas left and right. Seems like becoming interested in something new and different is just what I needed to overcome my writer's block. Isn't writer's block such a downright pain in the butt? As long as shooting doesn't involve blood and gore, that's fine by me.

I'm sorry if this story is short but don't worry, there's more where that came from and by that I mean there will be more Ratchet &amp; Clank fanfictions from me on the way in the future. One of the challenges I encountered is attempting to portray Clank correctly but it's proving to be difficult because of the way he speaks and his vocabulary. You know what robots are like; they tend to spout too much information.

This one-shot is set in the first Ratchet &amp; Clank game of the series and it takes place at Outpost X11 in planet Aridia. As for the part where the sandsharks scared the living daylights out of Ratchet, it's inspired from my gaming experience with my long-time best friend during last year's birthday party at my home. When my lifelong best friend and my university friend watched me play _Ratchet &amp; Clank_ on my PlayStation 2, I travelled through the level or rather the location, Outpost X11, in planet Aridia until I came across Skidd McMarxx, who crash landed on the planet. He assigned me to take care of the sandsharks which were swarming the area in exchange for a hoverboard. So, I took on the task without hesitation since doing it is the only way to progress further in the game. Whilst I made short work of the sandsharks and when I rounded the bottom of the raised platform, suddenly a pack of sandsharks dropped in, in front of me from above when I least expect it which caused not only me to scream but my life-long best friend to do the same thing too. The mission taking place at night didn't help matters either. It makes sense anyway because the sandsharks tend to be such sneaky critters which aren't to be taken lightly. This technique is known as a "jump scare" which is normally used in video games and horror films to have something occur abruptly and out of the blue to frighten the audience (in video games' case, the players or gamers). One sandshark is nothing to worry about but in numbers, they can be a problem. When Ratchet mentions about him not being able to fend off a never-ending multitude of sandsharks under pressure, this refers to me not capable of taking them on if I'm being cornered or they're all advancing on me at once.

This fanfiction version is very different from the original script version which I've written as part of one of my university assignments for the Critical Reflective Studies module for the BA (Hons) Creative Media and Visual Communication degree course. The scripts I've written will count as my visual experimentations. One of the differences is that the fanfiction version had more detail than the script version. Unfortunately, you won't be able to check out the original script version due to obvious reasons.

So, without further ado, here's my first Ratchet &amp; Clank fanfiction! Because of the fact this one-shot is inspired from my gaming experience, I dedicate this to my long-time best buddy, who I established a lifelong friendship with which spanned for nine years and counting. Believe it or not, we've been best friends since 2006 on the day her younger sister introduced her to me at computer club in our high school. It's such a milestone, isn't it? You know who you are! I know she doesn't hang around on this website anymore but I do see her in real life sometimes and I'm eagerly looking forward to our day out on the 24th February! Sure, our friendship isn't as long as Ratchet's and Clank's friendship but I know what it's like to have come this far.

Summary: Set in _Ratchet &amp; Clank_. Upon arrival at planet Aridia, Ratchet and Clank took it upon themselves to seek out Skidd McMarxx and his client in Outpost X11. Once they've located Skidd, he made a deal with the duo to deal with a horde of sandsharks and the sandshark generators in exchange for a hoverboard. They soon made an agreement to dispose the minor threat.

* * *

"_I got your back, like it's just you and me here_"

"_'Cause I got you, and you got me_"

— "_Lighthouse_" by G.R.L.

* * *

Sandshark Scuffle

Outpost X11 is an outpost in the Solana Galaxy which is currently under construction and there were several Flamethrower bots guarding and patrolling the base. The swamp is covered with small tracts of desert land with a little amount of vegetation and an abundant of rough sand as far as the eye can see. Around the land is a large body of murky, gloopy mud which acts similar to quicksand. There is a superlaser on a site at the outpost and there is a massive armaments factory. Despite the lack of population, sandmice resides here. Due to the climate of the planet, the air is humid and dry which is similar to any desert planet in this galaxy but the air is thankfully breathable just like most of the planets which were harbouring life.

After entering the atmosphere of planet Aridia, it appears to be a spaceship and it is slowly descending towards the landing pad. Upon close inspection, it turns out to be the Courier ship and it is preparing for landing. Once it touched down and the lights of the engine dimmed until it gets to the point where there isn't a trace of the luminosity left, the glass covering of the cockpit of the ship opened which revealed its pilot and its passenger.

The Courier ship is a colossal, boxy, van-like spaceship which is coated in a dark green colour and there are six engine ports in the back sides with two on the top of the rear. Judging by its appearance and its movement in the air, the comfort is below average and it's sluggish than Ratchet's homemade ship. Prior to landing on this dry and arid planet, he borrowed it from Planetary Chairman of planet Novalis due to him and his comrade crash landing on said planet, accidentally destroying his spacecraft in the process.

He hops out of his spaceship before letting his emerald eyes dart left and right and he landed on the ground, followed by Clank.

"Let's find Skidd McMarxx and his agent, they might be around here somewhere." Ratchet murmured, allowing his green-coloured eyes survey the surroundings of the darkened area at a slow pace and trying to take in everything he seen.

"I concur." Clank agreed resoundingly, nodding his head whilst he carefully scanned the place for any surviving organic lifeforms. He needed to be sure whether Skidd McMarxx and his client have survived unscathed. After a few seconds have passed, he verified their whereabouts. It's like as if he have a map of the outpost embedded within his processors. "Hopefully, they have survived the crash of that magnitude. My sensors have pinpointed their exact location."

"You worry too much! There's no use in standing here wondering whether they're alive or not. We'll get some answers when we search for them."

Before they started their trip through the darkened, swampy place, the minuscule robot leaped on to the lombax's back and fastened himself to the harness as he pulled in his arms, limbs, hands and feet, transforming into his compact mode like a backpack. They followed the path which had a trail of bolts which were located behind their spaceship's landing pad. By the time they reached the end of the path, they came across Skidd McMarxx who is standing near what appears to be a crashed escape pod.

"It's him! It's Skidd McMarxx from the infobot!" Ratchet exclaimed, pointing at the green-hued hoverboarder.

"In the flesh, dude!" Skidd hollered enthusiastically, confirming that he's the person the main twosome had seen from the screen of the infobot. "Did you dudes get a load of the space battle I was in?" He enquired, referring to his solarship Radical getting assaulted in outer space before crash landing on the very planet he and the soon-to-be heroes were on. He tried to brag to cover up the fact he and his client got shot out of the sky.

"Yeah, we saw ya…" Ratchet replied with a hint of amusement in his voice whilst he chuckled to himself as he uttered his words. "Screaming your head off for help."

Upon hearing the lombax's words, Skidd flinched before he attempted to keep his mishap under wraps. He didn't like the idea of ruining his dignity and his reputation. He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of the galactic duo. "Uh, that's more like a battle cry. My agent and I got assailed on the way to hoverboard practise."

"Oh my…! Is he all right?" Clank's mechanistic hands immediately flew to his mouth, almost gasping in dread. Well, as much as a robot can anyway. "I hope he had not incapacitated himself." He couldn't help but feel concerned for the hoverboarder's client upon hearing the news from the aforementioned hoverboarder, even though he and the alien feline have already witnessed the footage on the infobot.

"Don't worry about it, he'll be fine." Skidd assured Clank, shrugging his shoulders which indicated he didn't seem to be care about the well-being of his client. It's bad enough he already have a predicament on his hands. "But I've had some trouble on the way back to my ship…"

He paused when he, Ratchet and Clank spotted a group of sandsharks close by, which he is unnerved by this. Despite the nerve-racking moment, he resumed his conversation with the space-cruising pair by attempting to think of a convincing excuse as to why he refused to fight off seemingly endless waves after waves of sandsharks.

Speaking of the sandsharks, they were small red-orange creatures with four, stubby legs, a massive shark fin (hence the name of their species), two eyes, razor-sharp fangs and a white monotone physical appearance. One sandshark is bad enough but them attacking in large numbers can prove to be a problem.

"'Cause of my sprained ankle." He finished his sentence, resuming his discussion with the space-travelling pair.

"You've gotta be freakin' kidding me!" Ratchet groaned, rolling his eyes in a scoffing manner. The sandsharks didn't look like the kind of enemies to pose a threat, in comparison to the evil and hostile Electroids and the harmless Horny toads he dealt with on his home planet. Due to their low health, the Horny toads were suitable for target practise.

"I'll tell ya what; if ya can clear out all of the sandsharks I'll throw in a spare hoverboard for ya! How does that sound?"

Recalling their mission, Clank informed the professional hoverboarder about the important task of searching for Captain Qwark since he assumed saving the galaxy is more vital than receiving a hoverboard but his teammate had other plans. "We will be more than privileged to assist you in your time of need but Ratchet and I must locate Captain Qw—"

"Hang on a second! Y'know, I've always wanted a hoverboard. All right, you've got yourself a deal. We'll be right back when we take out every last one of these sandsharks." Ratchet interrupted Clank in midsentence as he shushed him which caused the silver android to cease from speaking. "C'mon, Clank! Let's kick their sorry butts into the next galaxy!" He pounded his fist into his open palm before he moved one of his hand as a gesture to beckon his mechanical parter to follow him.

After the duo's conversation with Skidd McMarxx, Clank hopped on to Ratchet's back while he retracted his arms, hands, legs and feet, converting into his backpack-like mode, and they set out to handle the current situation which they were tasked with. They crossed over the metal bridge which is over the mud across from Skidd and a handful of sandsharks pop up from the sand and they began to approach them.

Equipping his Pyrocitor weapon (which he previously purchased from a Gadgetron vendor during his romp through planet Novalis) which he withdrew from his Quick Select inventory, Ratchet charged into the battlefield and made short work of them whilst leaving charred corpses in his wake. Due to the low health of the sandsharks, all it takes is one hit to quickly dispose of them. Once that is done, only fifty sandsharks are remaining. The heroes proceeded to the right of their current location to eliminate the rest of their enemies before they traversed another crude metal bridge to the island which is on the far side of them.

As they ventured to the back of the high platform, a swarm of sandsharks suddenly cascaded on to the ground from above which took the protagonists by surprise. Since it is night time, it didn't help matters much. They were such sneaky critters for a reason, considering they like to swim in the sand before popping out to attack their unsuspecting victims. As a result, Ratchet instantly jumped with his arms and arms in the air in sheer alarm which made him drop his flamethrower in the process while his emerald eyes bulged out of their sockets which caused him to touch the floor with his furred bottom and scrambled backwards, fumbling with his Pyrocitor weapon. In spite of the ambush, Clank remained calm and collected as if the surprise attack didn't faze him. Without hesitation, the sandsharks made a beeline for them.

"AAIIIIEEEEEE!" Ratchet screamed at the top of his lungs, the way his shriek sounded almost uncharacteristically like as if it is coming from a female and it sounded in between a high-pitched shrill and a girlish scream. Due to the sudden ambush, he felt like as if his heart leapt out of his chest as adrenaline is coursing through his veins and his body while he panted heavily and frantically.

"My, my! I did not expect this to occur." Clank mused in his usual monotone voice. Not only did he not expect the teenage lombax to squeal, he also didn't expect the sandsharks to lurk in the shadows and the darkness, waiting for the right time to strike him and his furry friend. Despite his tone of voice, his composure remains unchanged and his expressionless face is intact.

Still overwhelmed by the incident, Ratchet couldn't get himself together and keep himself in check. Given the situation, all he could do is stutter and falter in his words. In fact, he didn't know what to make out of this event. "Wh-Wh-What th-th-the h-h-h-heck ju-ju-just happened?!"

"Heheheheheh! It appears these sandsharks have given you quite the fright."

"Hardy, ha, ha. Very funny. They caught me off guard, that's all. How am I supposed to know they're gonna drop in on us without warning when we least expect it?" Ratchet emitted a low growl from the back of his throat in response to his friend's seemingly inconsiderate remark. He shot a heated glare towards his robotic partner, annoyed that he sniggered at his expense and his misfortune as his emerald eyes glowered dangerously. "Y'know, I don't fight well under pressure." He muttered inaudibly as his face slowly softened and took a couple of deep breaths to straighten himself, with the intention of him not wanting the diminutive robot to hear the truth come out of him and he didn't want to look weak in front of him on the battlefield.

"Perhaps we should concentrate on the task at hand. We must not disappoint Skidd. He is depending on us to solve the dilemma."

"Yeah, you're right." Ratchet nodded, agreeing with the miniature robot without hesitation. He cracks his knuckles as if he is determined to rid the area of the sandsharks permanently and dishing out payback for scaring him out of his yellow-golden fur. "Let's get 'em!"

Slowly regaining his composure, Ratchet aimed his Pyrocitor at the sandsharks and pulled the trigger, which caused a stream of fire being discharged. Thus, all of them which were infesting the vicinity and being unfortunate to standing in its pathway were reduced to mounds of smouldering ashes. Once he scorched all of them, they leaped up on the petite platforms which served as steps to the raised section at the centre.

He then wasted no time to assault the sandshark generators around the middle before utilising his flamethrower gun to vaporise the other miniature red-orange critters which keep popping out of them or "swimming" in the centre of the platform. They are partly the source of the trouble, aside from the sandsharks themselves. Burning said generators prevents any more sandsharks from materialising. He bounced down from his current spot and singed the ones surrounding the generator.

The generators were tripedal, plant-like creatures which spawned sandsharks at their own free will. Their thin legs were remarkably strong, supporting their immense bodies. They sported yellow bulb-shaped figures with green-tinted markings on their skin. The orifices at their tops were surrounded by four spiky leaves which were in yellow and green colours from the bottom to the top. Their whole bodies were covered in spikes. They were motionless and they possess limited abilities. Their only form of defence is to constantly reproduce sandsharks without rest. Because of their lack of movement and defences, their sole attack is to continue duplicating sandsharks. If the generators were obliterated, waves upon waves of sandsharks will cease to exist.

"According to my calculations, there are additional twenty sandsharks here." Clank stated in a matter-of-fact tone of voice, making calculations in his supercomputer-like mind.

"I hear ya loud and clear, mainframe." Ratchet nodded, taking note of the current number of remaining sandsharks into account even as he given the petite, metallic automaton an alternative nickname such as the word, 'mainframe'. "The sooner we rid ourselves of these pests, the sooner I can get my hands on a hoverboard."

'_Mainframe'? Though, I do not comprehend the name Ratchet provided me, I will remind myself to inquire him at a later point in time. In the meantime, there are more pressing matters to attend to. _The instant Clank heard the word, "mainframe", from his furred companion, he became intrigued with it and wondered whether he should ask him about the alternate nickname or not. He decided not to concern himself with something so trivial when there are countless lives to be at stake, regarding the galaxy they are in.

And with that, Ratchet leaped across the platform in an en route to the last two generators. Pressing on the trigger of his Pyrocitor, he laid waste to the section of the area he and his robotic sidekick were at. By the time he finished searing the remaining sandsharks and spawn machineries, he switched his current firearm for his signature weapon, the OmniWrench 8000, for now.

"Excellent work, Ratchet. You have exterminated every single organism in this area. I propose we return to Skidd with the intention of claiming our prize." Clank suggested, after he congratulated Ratchet on exterminating all of the sandsharks and the annoying generators in the darkened area.

Spinning his OmniWrench 8000 with a single finger around the inside of the handle and grabbing it in case he accidentally dropped it on the floor which is his way of showing off before depositing it back in his Quick Select inventory, Ratchet promptly placed his gloved hands on his hip with a smug smile across his lips. He felt like his ego swelled up, basking in the glory from emerging victorious from the battle with the sandsharks. "Thanks for the compliment! All in a day's work. Heh, now you're talking! Let's head back to Skidd McMarxx. That hoverboard is just begging to be picked up."

They made haste to Skidd only to discover him standing next to his ship instead of him sticking around near his escape pod in spite of him claiming that he injured his ankle. Upon arriving at their destination, Clank dropped from his position on Ratchet's harness and walked around his partner until he is standing beside him. Skidd opened the door of his starship and fished out a hoverboard.

Holding the hoverboard in his green left hand, he alerted the lombax with the purpose of attracting his attention to him. "Here, catch."

He tossed the hoverboard to Ratchet, who caught it in his arms. He grinned at the sight of it in his possession even as his brilliant green eyes immediately lit up with immense joy, barely containing himself.

"Awesome! A brand-new Z-3000! Just what I wanted! They aren't available anywhere else to buy!" He bellowed with sheer glee, moving the hoverboard around in his gloved hands to see it in all of its glory and observing

"Anyway, I gotta vamoose. I'll see ya dudes in the hoverboard races." Skidd pointed his two fingers at the space-adventuring duo before he took off to an unknown location. "Peace out, guys!"

Skidd ends the discussion by bidding farewell to Ratchet and Clank before he departed through the exit of the door of his ship. With him gone, this allows them to track down Skidd's agent, explore the factory nearby and finding the Tresspasser gadget while they're at it. Before they did the aforementioned tasks, Clank jumped on to Ratchet's back and secured himself on his harness. For now, they jumped through the opened spaceship in order to travel back to the beginning of the outpost instead of backtracking and they began making their way to the city for the next two duties.

* * *

To be honest, when I first encountered the amass of sandsharks, they never scared me but when I went through this mission during Challenge Mode on my birthday last year, they frightened the living daylights out of me and my long-time best friend (for life). I must have been distracted due to talking to my friends or I had a lot on my mind and said sandsharks have caught me off guard. Note to self: I should concentrate more, keep my eyes peeled and don't let anything sidetrack me. The sandsharks aren't scary but every time they pop out of the sand for a sneak attack or they try to ambush me from above when I let my guard down, this scenario is terrifying.

While my pals were watching me play through Challenge Mode of _Ratchet &amp; Clank_, we were having discussions which were related to the series (one of our chats included me asking them if Ratchet looked like a cat or not. I told them that he is basically a space cat or kitty. This is one of the main reasons why Ratchet is my new favourite video game character and hero, seeing as I'm a cat person) and conversations which weren't regarding the games themselves.

If you want to know what I'm up to and if you're wondering why I'm not writing my fanfictions or updating my old ones, I suggest you follow me or talk to me on Twitter or chat to me on Facebook. Though, I normally accept friend requests from people I know and my friends and family. I'm also on Skype but I don't always use it, I only use it if I need to.

Have all of you heard of the song, "_Lighthouse_", by G.R.L? In my opinion, it suits Ratchet's friendship with Clank and I think the lyrics as well as the feeling the song and music is giving off conveys everything that they have been going through, throughout their adventures. Seeing as the Ratchet &amp; Clank Future series have a lot of character deaths in these games, I figured this song is perfect for the main protagonists. My interpretation of the song is that someone is suffering emotionally but luckily, there is someone who is kind enough to be there in their darkest hour. If you're suffering, you can always count on your friends and family to be there for you in your time of need and you can tell them of your problems. If only this is easy for us to be open about our problems and stresses. I don't know why but I have a gut feeling the song is a friendship song. Out of all of G.R.L.'s songs, I'd say this is their best song yet. It's heart-breaking but heart-warming at the same time. Plus, it really tugs at my heartstrings.

I'm thinking of setting up accounts on Fur Affinity and Weasyl at some point in the future, considering that I'm not on deviantART anymore seeing as I have lost all of my motivation to stay on the website and I desired to move on. You know the drill, review away and please no flames. Constructive criticism is acceptable as long as they are helping me to improve my writing and my writing style and they are positive, not negative.


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